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Tag: Lake Superior

  • Banished Words for 2026: The Phrase 6-7 Is Moved to 6-7

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    Every year, Lake Superior State University takes a big swing at our vocabulary choices. 2026 is the university’s 50th year of calling out words and phrases it believes the world has officially worn out. The Banished Words List is a tradition dating back decades. It highlights expressions the school says have been overused, misused, or driven people crazy.

    The list reflects the current moment, especially the language trends shaped by social media and younger generations.

    Banished Words List Highlights

    Topping this year’s list is the mysterious term “6–7.” The phrase has gone viral among young people online and in everyday conversation, but its meaning remains fuzzy at best. Even those who use it often struggle to define it clearly, leaving older generations confused and occasionally annoyed. That lack of clarity is one of the main reasons it earned a spot on the list.

    Other entries include familiar conversational staples like “my bad” and “reach out,” along with buzzwords such as “incentivize” and “demure.” According to the university, these words tend to surge in popularity during certain cultural moments before becoming a form of verbal clutter.

    There’s No Shame in the Game

    The Banished Words List isn’t meant to shame anyone. Conversely, its purpose is to reflect how language evolves and how quickly trends rise and fall. Social media, short-form videos, and viral slang now play a major role in accelerating that cycle, pushing phrases into the mainstream almost overnight.

    Some expressions probably aren’t going anywhere. Other terms like “6-7” could soon feel dated, waiting to be replaced by the next inside joke or viral catchphrase waiting in the wings. Think “sibidi rizz.”

    Sadly, I always see several phrases I use on the list. “My bad.” I’m not the only one using that phrase.

    For now, the list serves as a vernacular time capsule. The Banish Words List is a snapshot of how people speak, text, and post during this particular cultural moment. You can view Lake Superior’s full Banished Word List of 2026 on llsu.edu.

    Donielle Flynn has two kids, two cats, two dogs, and a love of all things rock. She’s been in radio decades and held down top-rated day parts at Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington DC radio stations throughout her tenure. She enjoys writing about rock news, the Detroit community, and she has a series called “The Story Behind” where she researches the history of classic rock songs.

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    Donielle Flynn

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  • Relic from the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald returned, plus $600,000 from Michigan

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    The state of Michigan is giving up ownership of a rare relic from the famous Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck, just weeks after it strangely obtained it through a settlement in a lawsuit that was completely unrelated to the doomed freighter.

    Larry Orr is getting one of the ship’s life rings back — and the state will still pay $600,000 to settle his lawsuit over police misconduct.

    “I feel a whole lot better,” Orr, 77, told The Associated Press this week.

    In 1975, eight days after the Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior, killing all 29 men, Orr said he found the life ring and a piece of a lifeboat on shore in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

    “There was an eerie feeling. Maybe someone had survived,” he recalled. “I looked around for footprints or any other sign of life for a while and never found anything.”

    Fast forward 50 years to this autumn: Orr was in talks with the Michigan State Police to settle a lawsuit. He accused Lt. David Busacca of violating his rights during a sexual abuse investigation that was ultimately discredited. Orr had spent five months in jail, in addition to house arrest, before charges were dropped in 2019.

    Orr and his attorney, Shannon Smith, said the state suddenly expressed interest in the Fitzgerald life ring during the negotiations. Orr said Busacca was aware that he owned it when he saw paperwork during a search of his Michigan home.

    Orr said he felt he was being manipulated, but he also needed money to move out of a recreational vehicle in Yulee, Florida. Smith said throwing the ring into the deal raised the settlement to $600,000 from roughly $300,000.

    “I think we should have gotten a million for everything they did to me,” Orr said.

    The AP was first to report the peculiar deal on Oct. 23. When state police were asked to explain why it was appropriate, spokesperson Shanon Banner said the department was “not comfortable.”

    Additional talks among lawyers led to a new agreement: Orr gets the ring back, while taxpayers will still be on the hook for $600,000 to close the police misconduct lawsuit. Banner acknowledged the terms this week.

    For decades, Orr allowed the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum in Paradise, Michigan, to display the orange ring, which has “Fitzgerald” in stenciled letters. Now he might sell it at auction.

    Orr said he’s trying to buy a modular home and his wife’s car “is on its last legs.”

    “I need all the money I can get,” he said.

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  • Historical society solves century-old lake mystery | CNN

    Historical society solves century-old lake mystery | CNN

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    Historical society solves century-old lake mystery

    The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society has found two of three ships that sank in the same Lake Superior storm more than a century ago, locating one in 2021 and the other in 2022.

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  • Shipwrecks from 1914 found in Lake Superior after disappearing during storm

    Shipwrecks from 1914 found in Lake Superior after disappearing during storm

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    Two shipwrecks from 1914 found in depths of Lake Superior


    Two shipwrecks from 1914 found in depths of Lake Superior

    00:24

    Michigan researchers have found the wreckage of two ships that disappeared into Lake Superior in 1914 and hope the discovery will lead them to a third that sank at the same time, killing nearly 30 people aboard the trio of lumber-shipping vessels.

    The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society announced the discoveries this month after confirming details with other researchers. Ric Mixter, a board member of the society and a maritime historian, called witnessing the discoveries “a career highlight.”

    “It not only solved a chapter in the nation’s darkest day in lumber history, but also showcased a team of historians who have dedicated their lives towards making sure these stories aren’t forgotten,” Mixter said.

    The vessels owned by the Edward Hines Lumber Company sank into the ice-cold lake on Nov. 18, 1914, when a storm swept through as they moved lumber from Baraga, Michigan, to Tonawanda, New York. The steamship C.F. Curtis was towing the schooner barges Selden E. Marvin and Annie M. Peterson; all 28 people aboard were killed.

    In this image taken from video provided by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society, lettering identifying a wrecked ship as the Selden E. Marvin is seen in Lake Superior in August 2022.
    In this image taken from video provided by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society, lettering identifying a wrecked ship as the Selden E. Marvin is seen in Lake Superior in August 2022.

    Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society via AP


    The society’s team found the wreck of the Curtis during the summer of 2021 and the Marvin a year later within a few miles of the first discovery. The organization operates a museum in Whitefish Point and regularly runs searches for shipwrecks, aiming to tell “the lost history of all the Great Lakes” with a focus on Lake Superior, said Corey Adkins, the society’s content and communications director.

    “One of the things that makes us proud when we discover these things is helping piece the puzzle together of what happened to these 28 people,” Adkins said. “It’s been 109 years, but maybe there are still some family members that want to know what happened. We’re able to start answering those questions.”

    Both wrecks were discovered about 20 miles north of Grand Marais, Michigan, farther into the lake than the 1914 accounts suggested the ships sank, Adkins said. There was also damage to the Marvin’s bow and the Curtis’ stern, making researchers wonder whether a collision contributed, he said.

    In this image taken from video provided by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society, lettering identifying the wrecked ship as property of the Edward Hines Lumber Company is seen in Lake Superior in August 2022.
    In this image taken from video provided by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society, lettering identifying the wrecked ship as property of the Edward Hines Lumber Company is seen in Lake Superior in August 2022.

    Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society via AP


    “Those are all questions we want to consider when we go back out this summer,” Adkins said.

    Video footage from the Curtis wreckage showed the maintained hull of the steamship, its wheel, anchor, boiler and still shining gauges — all preserved by Lake Superior’s cold waters, along with other artifacts.

    Another recording captured the team’s jubilant cheers as the words “Selden E. Marvin” on the hull came into clear view for the first time on a video feed shot by an underwater drone at the barge wreck site.

    “We’re the first human eyes to see it since 1914, since World War I,” one team member mused.


    Selden E. Marvin Underwater footage.mp4 by
    The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum on
    Vimeo

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  • Biden’s signature advances major projects in water bill

    Biden’s signature advances major projects in water bill

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    President Joe Biden signed a large defense bill on Friday that includes a water bill that directs the Army Corps of Engineers on major infrastructure projects to improve navigation and protect against storms worsened by climate change.

    The biggest project by far this year is a $34 billion Texas coastal barrier featuring massive floodgates and other structures to protect the Houston region with its concentration of oil refineries and chemical plants, at risk during major hurricanes.

    The Water Resources Development Act of 2022 also includes a $3.2 billion authorization for a new Soo Lock on the St. Marys River which connects Lake Superior with Lake Huron.

    Nearly all U.S. iron ore is mined near Lake Superior, but to create steel and build cars, it needs to travel on large vessels through a single, aging Michigan lock that federal officials have called the Achilles’ heel of the North American industrial economy.

    There are two locks operating but only one is big enough to handle the roughly 1,000 feet (305 meters) freighters the industry uses.

    “Everything was built around water transport on the Great Lakes,” said Kevin Dempsey, president and CEO of a steel industry group. If the lock fails, it could upend industry and manufacturing, he said. Roads and rail aren’t workable alternatives.

    After years of studies and planning, members of Congress push to include their preferred projects in the water bill, typically every two years. If they are successful, they tout the job creation and local benefits back in their districts. This water bill includes 25 project authorizations.

    Versions of the new Michigan lock have been authorized by Congress before and it is already under construction. But the Army Corps said inflation, design changes and other factors have significantly increased its cost. This year Congress authorized the Corps to spend much more. Some of the money still needs to be allocated. Officials say the new lock should be finished in 2030.

    The new Soo Lock is in Sault Ste. Marie on Michigan’s eastern Upper Peninsula, about 346 miles (556 kilometers) north of Detroit. The existing Poe Lock is growing older and Army Corps officials don’t want it to be a single point of failure for a critical supply chain.

    “When you have steel components that are in the water for 50 years, they do tend to fatigue and deteriorate,” said Kevin McDaniels, deputy district engineer for the Army Corps Detroit District.

    The Senate voted 83-11 earlier this month to pass the national defense bill. In addition to water infrastructure, it increases spending on defense programs and includes a Republican-favored measure to end COVID-19 vaccination mandates for U.S. service members. It passed the House with broad, bipartisan support.

    The water bill also makes it easier for the Corps to shift toward using wetlands and other nature-based solutions to combat flooding.

    “There is a lot in here that is important for our environment, our economy and for climate resilience,” said Amy Souers Kober, a spokesperson with American Rivers.

    For example, when hurricanes hit, coastal protections can be built with climate change in mind, allowing designers to think about how much seas will rise when they make their plans.

    There are numerous other provisions. The bill improves outreach with tribes, allows the Corps to focus more on water conservation in drought-prone areas and supports ecosystem restoration projects. In Michigan, it shifts more of the costs to the federal government for a project aimed at protecting the Great Lakes from invasive carp.

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    Reporter Corey Williams contributed to this story from Detroit.

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    The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

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  • Indiana teacher with ‘kill list’ agrees to no-contact order

    Indiana teacher with ‘kill list’ agrees to no-contact order

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    CROWN POINT, Ind. — A fifth-grade teacher in northwestern Indiana charged with felony intimidation after authorities say she told a student she had a “kill list” of students and staff has agreed to stay away from the school.

    Angelica Carrasquillo, 25, of Griffith signed a no-contact order Friday without objection when she appeared wearing a green jail uniform in Lake Superior Court, The Times of Northwest Indiana reported.

    Judge Kathleen Lang affirmed Carrasquillo’s not guilty plea to one felony count of intimidation.

    Carrasquillo was being held with a bond set at $20,000 surety or $2,000 cash.

    Court documents say Carrasquillo communicated “a threat to commit murder” on Oct. 12.

    Once officials at the school where she was employed, St. Stanislaus in East Chicago, learned of the threat, they immediately confronted her and escorted her from the building, the Diocese of Gary said in a message to parents.

    When Carrasquillo was asked why she wanted to kill herself and others, she reportedly told school officials: “I’m having trouble with my mental health, and sometimes the kids do not listen in the classroom. I also have trauma caused when I went to high school.”

    The threats came to light when a counselor overhead a fifth-grader say, “I heard Ms. Carrasquillo wants to kill herself and has a list.”

    The student reportedly said Carrasquillo voiced the threat to him directly and told the student he was on the list.

    The principal and an assistant principal said Carrasquillo gave them the name of one student on the “kill list,” but she did not reveal all the names, a court document said.

    Carrasquillo allegedly told school officials “she was only joking about it all.”

    East Chicago police said they are obtaining an emergency detention order for the teacher from the Lake County Prosecutor’s Office. She was taken into custody at her home Oct. 13.

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